The newly-appointed U.S. ambassador to Russia landed in Moscow on Thursday amid record tensions in the Russia-Ukraine war.
Lynne Tracy, a career diplomat who was the former ambassador to Armenia, traveled to the Russian capital after a Washington, D.C., meeting with her Russian counterpart Anatoly Antonov, the Moscow Times reported. Tracy was appointed by President Joe Biden after the former ambassador to Russia, John Sullivan, resigned in September for retirement.
She is expected to turn over her credentials “in the coming days” to Russia and is expected to be in place late in January, according to CNN’s Jennifer Hansler.
С возвращением в Россию, посол Трейси! #ПосолСША #ПосолТрейси https://t.co/TiYxwhVWQC pic.twitter.com/nwtNLbou15
— Посольство США в РФ/ U.S. Embassy Russia (@USEmbRu) January 25, 2023
She previously served in the U.S. embassy in Russia from 2014-2017 as the deputy chief of mission, and her most recent role was senior advisor for Russia Affairs in the Bureau of European and Eurasian Affairs at the U.S. Department of State.
“Welcome back to Russia, Ambassador Tracy,” the U.S. embassy in Russia tweeted Thursday.
U.S.-Russia relations have reached a low not seem for decades, with Russia expelling American diplomats from the U.S. embassy in March 2022 after the U.S. ordered the removal of a dozen Russian diplomats from the U.N., Reuters reported. Both countries have sanctioned hundreds of officials as the war has dragged on for over 11 months.
Allies to Russian President Vladimir Putin and Russian state television hosts have frequently made threats of using nuclear weapons in response to a loss in Russia’s war on Ukraine, and additional Russian threats materialized after the U.S. promised Ukraine 31 M1 Abrams tanks Wednesday. (RELATED: Biden Admin Approves The Delivery Of American Tanks To Ukraine)
White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby said at a press conference Wednesday that the U.S. has seen no indication of an increased nuclear threat from Russia and that messaging indicating so is coming from “propagandists.”